Hi Amy - Cool that you're headed to the Caucasus! And that you've already read my blog. Any chance you can get to Georgia as well as Armenia? You could day trip to all of Armenia from Yerevan, although a base in the north would mean less driving. You could also consider Vanadzor - bigger place than Dilijan.

You might consider Istanbul rather than/as well as Moscow - much cheaper visa!

Thanks, thursdaysd! I was thinking about including Georgia, but the apt. rentals in Yerevan are five day minimum, and then I was going to do one other base...On the other hand, if I could do everything out of there, it might be good to include Georgia. I do like to "settle in" a bit to a place. I'll definitely check out Vanadzor for the north.

I love Istanbul, but Russia is the "motherland",and it's been a lot longer (and a whole lot more changes ago) since I've been there than to Turkey: 1989. I know that the visa price is a killer--not to mention the price of everything else--but I've had a bit of a craving for St. Basil's and Red Square and conversations that begin with the meaning of life. (Okay, so that part may have changed, too...)

Aside from the khachkars, I preferred Georgia to Armenia, but YMMV. I didn't make it up to the high mountains, and sounds like you won't either if you want just one base since Tbilisi is the obvious one.

I was in Moscow in 2004, luckily before things got so expensive! The huge soviet-era hotel overlooking Red Square was actually affordable, but gone now. Understand the urge, though.

Well, I've got my trip planned out now!

I'll be flying into Yerevan in July and staying at Villa Delenda (thanks, thursdaysd!) for four nights and taking trips to Garni/Geghard for Vardavar and to some other outlying monasteries and to Lake Sevan, then doing a three day foray into Nagorno-Karabakh with Hyur Services tour company, then to Tezh Ler http://www.tezhler-resort.am/ on the road to Vanadzor for three nights. (I'll be exploring the North more from there, of course.)

Then it's on to Moscow and four nights in an apartment on Kamergersky, the pedestrian street, just a few blocks from Red Square.

I'm really looking forward to it!